Independent news is a different thing. I might question how or why it's the UK's obligation to provide that but I'm very proud that we do provide it through the World Service on the radio (broadcast around the world), the BBC News website and multiple regional global news channels available in most countries.
But that's a very different thing to making Strictly Come Dancing and Doctor Who available to expats and others as a "cultural lifeline". Part of leaving a country is that you do leave things behind and I don't see why TV is something people should be entitled to any more than they are to red London buses, policeman in strangely impractical hats or Ribena and Marmite.
Even aside from the practical challenges around licencing of content, I'm not sure the British TV licence payer has any interest in funding a global TV network, and even if we did would having this behemoth of broadcasting available across the world have a positive or negative impact on local stations, particularly in smaller English speaking countries?
But that's a very different thing to making Strictly Come Dancing and Doctor Who available to expats and others as a "cultural lifeline". Part of leaving a country is that you do leave things behind and I don't see why TV is something people should be entitled to any more than they are to red London buses, policeman in strangely impractical hats or Ribena and Marmite.
Even aside from the practical challenges around licencing of content, I'm not sure the British TV licence payer has any interest in funding a global TV network, and even if we did would having this behemoth of broadcasting available across the world have a positive or negative impact on local stations, particularly in smaller English speaking countries?